Insidious Piles

While the title of my blog could be referencing unfortunate fistulas, it is actually about heaps: heaps of everything. Newspapers, unopened mail, books... really, it is possible to construct piles from almost anything. I should know, as I am an inveterate piler-on.
I seem to be in a confessional mode and allowing one of those occasional glimpses of how we live here at the BauHaus Chicken Coop. Bob can be excused from this conversation, as he is much better than me at eliminating piles- sometimes by simply chucking everything in the offending pile into the garbage can. He is less tolerant than I am of clutter.

Piles evolve. They start as a single magazine or book and advance down that (literal) slippery slope towards deconstruction. I like a good tower in danger of avalanche-dom! It makes for fireworks and excitement when the pile finally lets go and everything comes whooshing down. Once the components of a pile are spilled onto the floor, a better assessment of the contents is possible and an edit can begin. Most of what is found in the pile are expired coupons, notes to one self about interesting books or music to check out (this becomes another auxiliary pile up near the computer) and the book that was due last week at the library.

This last heap is particularly noteworthy. It's what happens to a pile that gets moved because friends are coming to dinner. The pile that resided on the edge of the kitchen table now "hides" on the washing machine. This pile may be returned to the kitchen table intact, or allowed to age until the laundry needs doing. In truth, I probably wouldn't miss anything in this pile if someone came along and threw it away. But you never know.
And really? Our house isn't too bad. We clean up the worst of the dog fur and dust bunnies every few days and our bed is made and the dishes are done. It's just that piles happen.